According to Sound Transit, no matter what direction you’re heading on the 2 Line when it opens this spring, you’ll be greeted by artwork. The 2 Line officially opens on April 27. The segment is 6.5 miles and features eight new stations in Bellevue and Redmond.
At The Spring District, Artist Louie Gong, created a cut metal mural of a dragon to span the eastbound platform wall toward Redmond. On the other side, a phoenix, also cut metal and comprising a feathery motif common in Coast Salish culture, to span the westbound platform wall toward South Bellevue. Gong’s art reflects his Chinese and Nooksack heritage.
At different benches and points along the way, passengers face the dragon and the phoenix head-on. They also dee details like huckleberry, a symbol of bounty, and a hummingbird, which is a nod to Gong’s grandma.
According to Sound Transit, the artist had a vision of passengers coming through the station on a moving train and seeing the bigger picture of the dragon and phoenix as they passed through.
“There’s some twisting and turning. I wanted it to look like there’s some movement,” he said. “Passengers can fill in the gaps of the dragon as the phoenix as they’re moving through the station. It mimics old paintings, where clouds cover parts of the dragon, whereas here it’s signs, fire extinguishers and hallways.”
In 2016, Gong was chosen to create the artwork at Spring District Station by selection panel members from University of Washington, Bellevue Arts Commission, Wright Runstad & Company, Sound Transit, and the Puget Sound arts community.
Gong said the artwork at Spring District Station was an opportunity for Coast Salish people to put their thumbprint on the region’s infrastructure.
The 2 Line will open with eight new stations. This includes South Bellevue, East Main, Bellevue Downtown, Wilburton, Spring District/130th, Overlake Village, and Redmond Technology. It will eventually connect to Seattle over I-90.
There will be an opening celebration with Bellevue Downtown Station being the first stop along the way on April 27. This will feature a ribbon-cutting event at Bellevue City Hall Plaza at 10 am for speeches from community leaders. Other celebrations include family-fun stations, carnival games, a “Spin2Win” prize wheel, and an interactive display of the future Grand Connection crossing project.
